Interim Mayor Ed Lee, who upturned this year's mayoral race
with his switcheroo from not wanting the job permanently to seeking a full
four-year term, appears headed to clinching victory after a nasty skirmish for
Room 200 at City Hall.

Based on unofficial returns Wednesday morning, Lee was the
clear frontrunner with 31 percent of the vote. His closest challenger was
progressive Supervisor John Avalos, with nearly 19 percent. City Attorney
Dennis Herrera placed third with 11 percent.

Because Lee fell short of the 50 percent plus one vote
needed to secure victory Tuesday night, the other 13 candidates will each be
eliminated starting with the person who received the least votes. The second
choice, and if needed third choice, votes from those candidates' voters will
then be tabulated until a winner is declared.

Stopping just short of declaring victory, Lee sounded
assured during his Election Night bash that he would remain in first place.

"I think San Francisco wants us to do four more years.
What do you think?" Lee asked the crowd at his party at Tres restaurant
near AT&T Park.

If his lead holds Lee would become the city's first elected
Chinese American mayor. The elections department was expected to release the
first round of ranked choice voting results at 4 p.m. Wednesday after the Bay
Area Reporter went to press.

With his wife, Karen Zapata, at his side, mayoral
candidate John Avalos speaks to his supporters during an Election Night party
Tuesday. (Photo: Rick Gerharter)

Herrera and Avalos had yet to concede the race by press
time, as both were holding out hope they could pick up enough second and third
place votes to knock out Lee from the top spot.

Avalos issued a statement Wednesday morning saying he was
"happy" with the initial results and would wait for all votes to be
counted.

"We are confident that the results will wind up in our
favor; I think everyone is in for a surprise," stated Avalos.

During his party Tuesday night Herrera said he did not
expect to be in first place in the first round of voting.

"I always thought I would be in number two or number
three," Herrera told a small group of reporters at his party at club
Mighty in Potrero Hill. "We will just have to wait for them to count the
votes and see what happens."

With turnout just shy of 31 percent, this year's election
saw the lowest voter participation rate in a decade for a mayoral contest.
Polls showing Lee favored to win and little in the way of hot button ballot
measures other than a fight over pension reform kept many people away from the
polls.

The two out candidates in the race failed to connect with
voters and received little mainstream media attention. Lesbian Green Party
candidate Terry Baum, a playwright and actor, landed in 11th place, ahead of
Assessor-Recorder Phil Ting, with less than 1 percent of the vote.

Gay former Supervisor Bevan Dufty came in seventh with less
than 5 percent of the vote. It was a particularly dismal showing for a
candidate who was the first to launch a mayoral bid more than two years ago.

Early on Dufty struggled with campaign staff changes and a
self-imposed cap on donations. It wasn't until early this year that he relented
on the fundraising stipulations, leading to his securing an endorsement from
the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund and raising $1.24 million.

His shot at being the first out person to be elected mayor
of San Francisco, however, seemed to resonate more in LGBT communities outside
of the Bay Area than in his hometown. He did land number one backing from both
of the city's LGBT newspapers.

But he failed to nab first place endorsements from the
city's two LGBT Democratic clubs and few of the city's out elected leaders. And
many voters in his old supervisorial district, which covered the Castro and Noe
Valley, questioned why Lee should not be given a full term as mayor.

A study of absentee voting in the race showed early returns
lacking from the city's gayborhood. The majority came from Asian neighborhoods,
with Chinese voters in particular turning out in droves.

Dufty remained upbeat at his bash Tuesday night at South of
Market Mexican restaurant Don Ramon's, where a party atmosphere propelled by an
open bar held forth.

"This has been an incredible road, even with all the
topsy-turviness of it," Dufty told the crowded dining room filled with
family, supporters, and longtime friends.

He said he was proud of running a positive campaign, and
while he did not outright concede defeat Tuesday night, Dufty did say he
intends to continue to press for change in the city.

"The issues we've talked about aren't going away. I
don't go away tomorrow. I know there is a lot of work that needs to be
done," said Dufty.

State Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco), once considered
a strong contender for mayor, also had a poor showing Tuesday night. He was in
fifth place with 7 percent of the vote. Public Defender Jeff Adachi was in
sixth with 6 percent.

Clashes, humor in race

In recent weeks the vitriol in the mayoral campaign had
reached a fever pitch. A number of the candidates requested state monitors to
watch over polling stations due to vote tampering and campaign donation
laundering allegations lodged against Lee's supporters. Several investigations
are under way into the charges.

Dennis Herrera greets his supporters at the Election
Night party for San Francisco mayor. (Photo: Rick Gerharter)

Herrera also came under attack with negative mailers paid
for by the Victory Fund questioning his taking contributions from donors with
city contracts. And anonymous backers for Lee and Dufty questioned Herrera's
initial support for same-sex marriage back in 2004.

Asked about the personal hits Tuesday night, Herrera shook
them off as mere political ploys.

"Punches were thrown in this campaign. I tried to throw
some of substance," said Herrera.

There were also humorous moments. Lee's mustache took on a
life of its own, becoming a character both heralded and mocked in YouTube
videos. It was just one of numerous gimmicks used to attract voters' attention.

There was the "Chiubacca" character who tagged
along on the campaign trail with Board President David Chiu, who came in fourth
in the first round with 9 percent, and the herd of "Goats for Avalos"
carted from Bernal Heights to Dolores Park last Sunday.

Lee's rise to power at City Hall started earlier this year
when he became the surprise pick to replace outgoing Mayor Gavin Newsom, who
became the state's lieutenant governor. His selection was orchestrated by
Chinatown powerbroker Rose Pak and former mayor turned newspaper columnist
Willie Brown.

Dufty, prior to his being termed off the Board of
Supervisors, and Chiu both voted for Lee to become the interim mayor, partly
due to Lee's assurances that he would not run for office. But after months of
pressure from Pak, Brown, and Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, a former San
Francisco mayor herself, he relented and jumped into the race.

His candidacy instantly shook up the dynamics of the
campaign. From then on it was seen as Lee's to lose.